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Liverpool Echo
Liverpool Echo
Sport
Ian Doyle

'Virgil started it' - Fabinho explains what all his Liverpool team-mates are now calling him

Fabinho admits he enjoys being the thief in Liverpool's team as he vowed to keep up his creative transformation under Jurgen Klopp.

The Brazilian notched his seventh goal of the season when he came off the bench to score from the spot and seal a 2-0 home Premier League win over Watford on Saturday.

Fabinho is the leading midfielder scorer for the Reds this term having netted just three times in three previous campaigns at Anfield.

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But the 28-year-old acknowledges his primary role is instead frustrating the opposition before contributing further upfield.

"I receive the ball a lot and I'm involved in the creation process," said Fabinho. "It's good because I always have the ball, and I'm always very involved in transitions between defence and attack. I also like the fact that there are plays and movements that I can anticipate to intercept some passes.

"I like to steal the ball, take the ball from the other team and many times, depending on where you win the ball, you can put a team-mate through into a good attacking position. I think that's what I enjoy doing the most.

"Attacking players always grab the headlines because they score goals and have better overall attacking statistics, so it's normal. The younger fans will always pay greater attention to the ones who score goals, since scoring goals is the best thing about football. I focus on how I can help those players improve their statistics: to score more goals and provide more assists."

Fabinho, who has four goals from open play this season, added: "In terms of statistics, I guess they're not supposed to be the most important thing for a player in my role, but it's good when you're able to help your team with assists and goals, so I'm glad I've been scoring and supporting the team in attack. I look forward to continuing to contribute in that area.

"Generally, that's it: I want to keep up the good work in defence and, of course, I'm hoping that this translates into good collective stats for the team so we can conquer big things."

Speaking to UEFA.com, Fabinho also detailed why he has accrued several nicknames during his time at Liverpool while revealing what he is called by most of his team-mates.

"The first time I heard 'Dyson' was when I heard Jurgen (Klopp) saying it after a match in which I'd defended really well, sweeping up in the middle of the pitch," he said. "The nickname 'the Lighthouse' was given to me by Pep Lijnders. The players usually call me 'Flaco'. 'Flaco' means 'Skinny' (in Spanish). Virgil (van Dijk) started it and now everybody calls me that. Even the coach sometimes calls me that. So, that's the one which is most common here."

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